1. Field Of The Invention
The invention herein pertains to exterior racks or brackets which are used by automobile and other vehicle owners for carrying bicycles, wheelchairs and other similar cargo. The bracket is temporarily affixed to the exterior of the vehicle for ease and convenience in transporting a wheelchair or the like without occupying interior passenger space.
2. Description Of The Prior Art And Objectives Of The Invention
For many years vehicle owners have transported bicycles and wheelchairs in vehicle trunks and in the rear seats of automobiles, vans and other vehicles out of necessity and thereby have encountered a great deal of inconvenience in so doing. Bicycles and wheelchairs can be extremely unmanagable while attempting to place them in the back seat of an automobile and are oftentimes too heavy for many persons to lift them up and over into a vehicle trunk compartment. Through the years various racks have been constructed for transporting such cargo exteriorly on top, in front and at the rear of cars, trucks and vans, all with varying degrees of convenience and success. Many such conventional brackets or carriers are difficult to properly secure to the vehicle and others, although securely attached, are difficult to use, as oftentimes the cargo has to be lifted several feet off the ground, requiring two or more persons to place a conventional bicycle or wheelchair thereon. In addition, persons who must carry a wheelchair on one occasion and a bicycle on another have had to remove one carrier from the vehicle and mount a second carrier in its place, depending on the particular cargo to be transported at that time.
Thus with the difficulties and disadvantages associated with conventional vehicle carrier brackets, the present invention was conceived and one of its objectives is to provide a carrier bracket for mounting on a vehicle which can be used to carry either a bicycle or wheelchair without removal from the vehicle.
It is still another objective of the invention to provide a vehicle carrier bracket which is rigidly fastened to the vehicle and upon which a bicycle or the like can be conveniently lifted, mounted and removed by one person.
It is another objective of the invention to provide a vehicle carrier bracket which is affixed to a conventional vehicle trailer hitch and which can be modified to carry either a bicycle or a wheelchair as desired by the user.
It is also an objective of the invention to provide a vehicle carrier bracket which is relatively low in cost and which can be easily assembled, mounted on a vehicle hitch, modified for bicycles or wheelchairs, disassembled and removed as required from the vehicle hitch by relatively unskilled personnel.
It is still another objective of the invention to provide a vehicle carrier which will readily secure and maintain a bicycle or wheelchair while being transported over rough roads or terrain.
Various other advantages and objectives will be realized by those skilled in the art as a more detailed presentation of the invention is presented below.